1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water battery device or a water environment battery device (hereinafter referred to simply as “water battery device”) for providing a battery action utilizing an ionization tendency so as to solve metal ions and active oxygen species into water, thereby generating function water (that hereinafter may be referred to as “battery action water”). The water battery gives a variety of useful functions such as sterilization function, antibacterial function (including preventing and removing effect of microorganisms such as antifungal action), bug-preventing and harmful-insect-repellent function, fresh product preservation function, plant growth promoting function and so on. The water battery device provides such functions to various kinds of waters in a water environment: tap water, well water, purified water of a purification system, stored water such as water in a variety of containers or water tank or water pool, flowing water in natural environment such as river, stored water in water environment such as water moat, lake, pond and sea, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese patent laid open patent publications No. 2003-181454 and No. 2005-58847 show sterilization devices, respectively, that use a negative electrode made of a non-noble metal and a positive electrode made of a noble metal.
The sterilization device of No. 2003-181454 disposes “a negative metal made of a non-noble metal in a bimetallic corrosion and a positive electrode made of a noble metal in a bimetallic corrosion” via a spacer so as to face to each other. Thus, it forms “a galvanic battery” that generates “a voltage of 0.7V or more” between the electrodes (paragraph 005).
The structure constituting such “galvanic battery” is an electromotive force generating mechanism by use of a so-called galvanic anode system (that does not use a power source but uses a corrosion cell (macro cell) by direct contact of dissimilar metals). It is apparent from the description of No. 2003-181454 that “a closed circuit is formed each between the negative electrode and the positive electrode and a stirrer is interposed at a middle of the circuit so as to make it operable as shown in a principle drawing of FIG. 7 and a circuit diagram of FIG. 8” (paragraph 015). That is, the negative electrode and the positive electrode form the closed circuit via the spacer so as to have a direct electrical connection with each other and to be put into a direct conduction state.
Next, No. 2005-58847 has a description about a structure of a purifying/sterilizing body 4 that it “generates ions between pipes and purifies and sterilizes an object to be purified by such ion effects” by arranging a titanium pipe 17, a stainless pipe 18, a titanium pipe 19, a stainless pipe 20 and a titanium pipe 21, as pipes of different materials, next to next in series inside a vinyl chloride pipe 16 (paragraph 0015). However, the publication lacks specific description on a mechanism or how the ions are generated by the ion effects. On the other hand, though the titanium pipe 17, stainless pipe 18, titanium pipe 19, stainless pipe 20 and titanium pipe 21 are disposed adjacently to each other even in the purifying/sterilizing body 4, it seems that they are electrically connected with each other at their ends (e.g. board-like member connecting lower ends of each adjacent pipes in FIG. 4), thereby generating ions between the pipes by the similar galvanic anode system as described above.
As mentioned above, it is only the structure using the macro cell of the so-called galvanic anode or direct contact of dissimilar metals that has been conventionally proposed as a structure to generate an electric current or ions or the like that performs sterilization function between dissimilar metals without need of external power source.
The inventors found that the structure of galvanic anode or macro cell eroded the electrically conductive part (spacer or the like) itself between the dissimilar metals. If the corrosive part becomes electrically non-conductive, the electromotive force action becomes instable or disappears, thereby causing such problems as a desired goal cannot be obtained. Then, the inventors devoted themselves to experiments on techniques that enabled metal ions or the like to be produced stably between dissimilar metals by a system or a mechanism other than the galvanic anode system and that made it possible to stably perform a desired sterilization effect or the like over a long period of time. As a result, the inventors have conceived an electromotive force (EMF) structure that is far from the so-called galvanic anode, as a structure that makes it unnecessary to use an external power source. That is, as a result of repetitive studies and developments, the inventors have found that it is possible to five various useful functions such as the sterilization effect and so son to the water by the following system. Specifically, the system uses at least two kinds of reactors made of dissimilar metals having different ion tendency (non-noble metal and noble metal). The reactors are not directly connected electrically with each other by an electrically conductive material. By contrast, an electrically insulating material is interposed between the reactors so as to form a communicating space of a minute interval space (interval space in which the water can communicate inside and outside thereof). Then, the reactors are disposed in the water. Thus, metal ions and active oxygen species are released and dissolved so that the metal ions and active oxygen species give various useful functions to the water.
In view of the above, the inventors have completed a water battery device having an electromotive force structure that makes an external power source unneeded and that is far from the macro cell structure using the so-called galvanic anode or directly contacted dissimilar metal. Specifically, the water battery device constructs a unit forming the communicating space. The unit is arranged along a passing water route or a running water pathway inside a passing water space or a running water space as a passing water environment or a running water environment. The unit may be disposed in a space that is located near a passing water space or a running water space so as to communicate with the water inside the water space. Moreover, the unit may be located inside a stored water space as a stored water environment. Then, the unit elutes or releases the metal ions in a perfect ionized state and the active oxygen species in addition from the non-noble metal into the water, such as the passing water or running water or stored water, by the battery action between the reactors. The battery action between the reactors is generated via only the water as a current carrying medium. Specifically, the current carrying medium may be ions such as chloride ions (chlorine ions) and sodium ions contained in a daily life water such as a well water or a tap water. Thus, the unit produces a battery action water between the reactors so that the battery action water give stably a variety of function or effects over a long period of time, such as the sterilizing effect, anti-bacterial effect, anti-fungal effect, bug proof effect, harmful insect repellent effect, fresh product preserving effect, plan growth promoting effect.
On the other hand, as a result of various experiments and studies, the inventors found that, if the metal such as a magnesium for releasing the metal ions in the water was continuously immersed in the water for a fixed time period or more, a surface of the metal was tarnished. In case of the magnesium, the surface turned black. It is presumed that such discoloration be caused by oxidation of the surface of the metal by dissolved oxygen in the water and that an oxide film be formed on the surface of the metal. In case the oxide film is formed on the surface of the non-noble metal as one of the reactors, it inhibits a function of forming a battery between the non-noble metal and the noble metal. Then, the generation rate of the metal ions and the active oxygen species are largely lowered and, at worst, becomes zero. Moreover, if the discolored film (part of oxide film) at the surface of the metal is peeled off from the surface of the metal and released into the water, the water quality may be degraded or the water may become a water that does not fulfill a water quality criterion, particularly in case the invention is applied to the drinking water such as the tap water.
In addition, as a result of various experiments and studies, the inventors found that, if the metal such as the magnesium was continuously immersed in the water for a fixed time period or more, a biological slime or a microbial membrane (referred to as “biofilm” hereafter) was formed on the surface of the metal, in case of the water where viable bacteria live to a considerable amount or more in the water, particularly in case of the well water or the bathwater or the bathtub water or the like. In case the biofilm is formed on the surface of the reactor (particularly on the surface of the non-noble metal as one of the reactors), it inhibits a function of forming a battery between the non-noble metal and the noble metal, too. Then, the generation rate of the metal ions and the active oxygen species are largely lowered and, at worst, becomes zero. Moreover, if the biofilm at the surface of the metal is peeled off from the surface of the metal and released into the water, the water quality may be degraded or the water may become a water that does not fulfill a water quality criterion, particularly in case the invention is applied to the drinking water such as the tap water.
According to the inventors' further findings, the oxide film or the biofilm is formed on the surface of the metal (particularly on the surface of the non-noble metal) even if the non-noble metal reactor and the noble metal reactor are disposed with the communicating space in the water so as to generate the battery action between them. That is, if the non-noble metal reactor and the noble metal reactor are disposed simply in the water, it is impossible to prevent the oxide film or the biofilm.
It would be perceived as the caused that the water passes freely in and out of the communicating space between the reactors, so that the metal ions and the active oxygen species in the battery action water (water containing the metal ions and the active oxygen species by the battery action) flow out instantaneously from the communicating space between the reactors into the external water environment. Thus, the concentration of the battery action water (ion concentration and active oxygen concentration) in the water is diluted inside the communicating space.
That is, when the concentration of the battery action water (ion concentration and active oxygen concentration) in the water inside the communicating space is kept at a fixed level or more, the oxide film and the biofilm are restrained and prevented from being generated by the metal ions and the active oxygen species with such concentration. Particularly, a battery action water having a certain concentration completely kill the germs responsible for the biofilm to prevent the formation of the biofilm. By contrast, if the concentration becomes short after the battery action water in the water inside the communicating space was instantly released to the outside water environment, the oxide film and the biofilm are easy to be formed on the surface of the metal. Moreover, along with the formation of the oxide film or the biofilm on the surface of the metal, the battery action is blocked as described above, thereby accelerating the formation of the oxide film and the biofilm on the surface of the metal.
Particularly, in case the surface of the non-noble metal reactor is not faced with the noble metal surface, there is no battery action generated. Consequently, even in relatively a short time, the oxide film is produced on the surface of the non-noble metal surface, thereby tarnishing the metal surface, or the biofilm is formed thereon.